Teaching and research are the two principal activities in Higher Education. Unfortunately, many staff involved in both activities find the two are in competition or even in conflict, i.e. the time spent on research is time not spent on teaching. However, some academics (especially in science disciplines) seem capable of achieving a symbiosis between teaching and research activities [1]. Evidence also suggests that connecting student learning to staff research can be highly beneficial for both staff and students [2].
In our department, we make a considerable effort to develop students' understanding of research, as well as their capacity to conduct research themselves. This culminates when final year students undertake their research project (15 ECTS). However, until recently our approach to instilling a research culture in our undergraduates has lacked coherence. For example, students completing their research project must produce an article with their results as part of their assessment. Although a copy is kept by the supervisor, future students rarely had access to these; thus, this body of knowledge was largely inaccessible to future students due to the lack of appropriate “storage facilities”. This is contrary to the spirit of a research community, based on the concept of communication of knowledge.
The aim of this research is to explore the use of e-learning to support the development of a departmental research culture, involving undergraduate students and staff. Our aim is to encourage the creation, at a departmental level, of a community of researchers who share knowledge and experiences with their peers. The e-learning tools created will help to enhance students' understanding of the role of research in science disciplines, and further develop their ability to carry out research as part of a “research community”.
A research area has been created on the departmental VLE, Blackboard, which will contain a range of research resources such as an online repository for third year undergraduate research projects, a blog, research project suggestions, etc. The online repository will be our own Science e-journal, showcasing the research conducted by final year undergraduates, so the body of knowledge created each year by students will be easily available to future students. This idea has been successfully implemented in other science departments across the UK [3]. The blog offers a mixture of current research initiatives at departmental level, and research news from various science disciplines.
A preliminary anonymous questionnaire (answered by 14 out of 21 students, 66% response rate) was deployed to undergraduate students about to start their research project, in order to assess their level of digital literacy and initial response to the tools developed. Students were highly computer-literate, with most students regularly engaging on social networking and other web 2.0 tools. Student initial feedback about the online tools was very positive. It is likely that this positive response is linked to the high level of digital literacy of this group.

References
[1] Colbeck C. (1998), The Journal of Higher Education, 69(6), 647-671.
[2] Hattie J., Marsh H. W. (1996) Review of Educational Research, 66(4), 507-542.
[3] Jenkins A, Healey, M., Zetter, R. (2007), Linking teaching and research in disciplines and departments, Higher Education Academy, p65.